Capitalism

Capitalism is inherently competitive and guarantees nothing to those who, for one reason or another, are incapable of competing successfully.One way to approach capitalism in a research paper is to illustrate that capitalism is exploitative in that it forces people to be "competitive" rather than "cooperative". It creates a kind of a rat race for the worker who must live a life in which there is a real possibility that changes in consumer demand or in technology will eliminate his/her livelihood and in which his/her ability to find a new job is conditioned by his/her "ability to compete".

Capitalism, because it is inherently competitive, creates a situation in which businesses either grow or die. The world of work in a modern corporation is frequently a kind of pressure cooker for capitalism and the worker. This is fine for those whose personality structure is such that they thrive on that sort of thing, but it creates misery for many others. Such an environment places demands on people that many cannot meet. This is exploitative in the extreme and note that there is really nothing that can be done about it. "Stress" is the great bugaboo of modern corporate life. Socialist systems have a poor track record vis a vis the generation of wealth.The research paper could argue that you would not wish to live in China or the old Soviet Union.

What is Wrong with Capitalism?

In your research paper, you should use Marxist concepts even though you may not be a believer in the Marxist system taken as a whole. With Marxism as a basis, outline the things that are wrong with Capitalism:

• Capitalism is inherently exploitative. One longs for a kind of economic "peaceable kingdom"; such cannot exist under an economic system in which competition plays such a large role as it does in capitalism.
• A research paper on capitalism from the political science standpoint shows that there would be a lot less of it if the competitive pressures that are an inevitable part of capitalist systems were not at work.
• Stress - Under a competition induced "grow or die" mode of economic organization there will evolve high-energy, high-pressure corporate units; the low-energy, low-pressure ones will die off.

Is Capitalism Good or Bad in Today's Economy?

Capitalism is known as a system where private owners control every aspect of an industry in order to make profits for their own interests. It is typically looked at as an economic system due to the fact that services, goods and assets are continuously being exchanged based on particular transactions. In today's economy, profitability is important, but there are also a plethora of external and internal factors involved which determine the type of model that exists today.

For the most part, capitalism can be viewed as complex system based on inequality and monopoly. It may be beneficial due to the fact that it allows for a maximum output that is possible based on specific input; however benefits are rarely distributed in an equitable manner. In the economy that exists today, capitalism would not be beneficial since it would allow a free market to gain the power of monopoly. It would also exploit individuals by offering increased prices. Businesses may gain a desired monetary amount, but it would also mean that workers receive wages that are decreased.

Although there are blends of capitalism that exist all over the world, it may not be the best system for the United States. The government would gain complete access to factors such as price control, subsidies and even tariffs. Most importantly, the idea of competition would be severely decreased and it would undermine the function of the overall market.